Okay, let me get the following BOLD STATEMENT out of the way. If I absolutely HAD to choose my single favorite BADASS “action” protagonist of all time HARI MICHELSON (AKA CAINE) would get the nod. Now I have read many books with main characters who “went to 11” on the 10 level kick-ass meter so picking a favorite or comparing one to the other is very hard to do. However, overall, taking all aspects of nut stomping, bone-breaking, dialogue-delivering (very important), head-splitting, “you done fucked with wrong person today” awesomeness, CAINE would get the win. He is the quintessential KICKASSER!!! ******** BRIEF INTERLUDE FOR CLARIFICATION********I need to pause for a moment in my homage to Caine to make the following point clear. While Hari Michelson/Caine WOULD certainly be high up on my list of all time favorite literary characters, his spot at the top if this list is based only on the vastness of “badass” that he possesses. Thus favorite characters of mine like Locke Lamora (aka The Gentlemen Bastard), Tyrion Lannister and Glotka (from Abercrombie’s First Law trilogy), as awesome as they are wouldn’t get out of the first round in the T.A.C. (Tournament of Badass Champions.) ********END BRIEF INTERLUDE********Anyway, just for comparison's sake (and so you know I have thought this through) here are a few of my favorite characters that Caine was reluctantly required to bitch-slap on his way to the title of HIS ROYAL BADNESS AND MOST MAIN MAN:1. Roland Deschain……and I cry your pardon, Gunslinger. 2. John Clark aka Mr. Clark (Tom Clancy novels)3. Lancelot (Fionavar Tapestry by Kay)……maybe the heroest hero of them all.4. Helikoan (aka Aeneas from Gemmell’s Troy series)5. Parker (Richard Stark novels)6. Takeshi Kovacs (Richard Morgan novels)7. Emile Khadaji (“The Man Who Never Missed”)8. Kane 9. Druss the Legend10. Conan...WAIT...HOLD UP...Holy literary faux pas Batman...I almost forgot... 11. Logan "Ninefingers" (from Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy)....sorry Bloody Nine***All of you guys are awesome, but unfortunately somebody had to win***So let me tell you a little about Hari Michelson and the world of Heroes Die. The book itself is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE novels. This is always the FIRST book I recommend when someone is looking for a “fun, kickass action orientated” science fiction or fantasy book. For what it is, I think it is almost a PERFECT novel, namely a high-octane, fast paced, brutally violent story with an original science fiction/fantasy back-story and….. well, you already know how I feel about the main character. BACKSTORYEarth of the future is controlled by mega corporations that have developed into a rigid occupation-based caste system. Society is now separated into 7 corporate-based castes that include: Leisurefolk (top of the food chain, think “idle rich”), Investors, Businessmen,Administrators, Professionals(e.g., white collar workers with degrees like doctors, lawyers and accountants); Artisans; Laborers(e.g., unskilled labor pool). In addition, there is a quasi- 8th group known as “Workers” who are prisoners, dissidents and other unfortunates who have been “lobotomized” and turned into something similar to a cybernetic zombie.The social and political aspects of the society in the novel are very interesting but barely explored. I would love to read an entire book focusing only on this aspect of the society. In Heroes Die, we only get enticing bits and pieces but they are fascinating. In this world of “scare resources” with the “haves” having to keep control of the “have nots” the ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY is king and queen. You see, on Earth, people no longer “watch” TV or movies. Instead technology allows audiences to literally share the experiences of “actors” as they participate in “Adventures” on a planet called Overworld…..[BRIEF PAUSE FOR DESCRIPTION OF ACTORS AND OVERWORLD]Overworld is Earth in a parallel universe (the “how” is explained in the book so just accept it for now). Overworld is your standard sword and sorcery fantasy realm in which magic works, humans live side by side (though not peaceably) with all manner of fantasy creatures and the technology is a cross between quasi-medieval and quasi industrial.Actors = Fantasy special forces commandos. Actors are not the Hollywood stars of today. They are men and women who have first spent years of training learning how to be either a magic adept or a fighter and then years more in Overworld learning how to speak the language and practice their skills before being accepted as Actors ready to go on “Adventures.” Basically, this is you basic fantasy fan boys dream come true. I would also mention here that the training is very expensive and so “would be” Actors need “patrons” from the higher castes to pay for it in the hopes of making money on their later Adventures. [END BRIEF PAUSE]So when their years of training is complete, Actors will be transported to Overworld (known by the locals as Ankhana) and assigned real life “roles” to play in the events of Ankhana. The more dangerous and more life threatening, the more entertaining and the more profitable. Thus these actors get involved in political disputes, gang wars, military campaigns and often die as a result. But hey…..THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT.You see, by plugging into a special chair and donning a special helmet, an audience member can literally become the Actor and shares the Adventure as if they were there themselves (though without the whole fear of death thing). You hear what they hear, smell what they smell and even taste what the taste. The chairs also provide life support and nutrition for the audience member so they can stay plugged in for days at a time. This sort of “first hand” Adventure is very expensive and usually only the Leisurefolk and Investor Class can afford it. For everyone else, there are “replays” and are more real than virtual reality but not quite the same as the more expensive version. So with ALL of that background...it’s time to meet Hari Michelson (aka Caine). Hari Michelson is the most famous Actor on Earth. I won’t give you all of his background because it is fun to learn about it for yourself, but he was born into the Labor class and was “discovered” by a Businessman who became his patron. He was trained and became a member an Actor (a member of the Professional caste). His alter-ego, is the assassin Caine (aka the Blade of Tyshalle) and his legendary Adventures on Overworld are the most popular in history. Despite being less than 6’ tall and weighing considerably less than 200 pounds, he is WITHOUT QUESTION, the most feared individual on Overworld. His skill in hand-to-hand and weapons is unmatched and his ruthless, berserk style is the stuff of legends…literally. During his “career” he has killed hundreds of people, single handedly toppled governments and been the focal point for several of the most pivotal events in Overworld history. He is the one guy in the room with whom you DO NOT MESS.....sorry but I warned you about the gushing character man-love at the beginning of the review. Well Hari on Earth is much like Caine on Overworld in so far as his attitude goes. He rubs the higher ups the wrong way with his insubordination and lack of bootlicking and would have long ago been busted for "caste violation" except his MASSIVE POPULARITY and (hence) MASSIVE PROFITABILITY. PLOT SUMMARYSo how about the actual plot itself you ask? Well it is involved but oh so tasty. You see Caine’s estranged wife (and fellow Actor) has disappeared while on Overworld. Caine, being the no-nonsense fuck anybody who hurts my loved one kinda guy wants to go start killing people until someone tells him where she is. BUT the powers have other plans. Caine’s wife’s “ratings” aren’t what they once were and so they will only allow Caine to go to Overworld and attempt a rescue IF he agrees to first assassinate the newly installed “Emperor” of Overworld who has recently assumed power. Earth is very worried about the new Emperor because he appears to have the power to bring peace to Overworld. This would be very bad for business. Bloodshed, war and strife make for entertaining and profitable adventures….a stable, peaceful Ankhana would be a disaster. So Caine finds himself embroiled in political machinations both on Earth and Overworld with enemies all around him including a sadistic, brutal villain named Berne who has been granted vast powers by the new “god like” Emperor. Yes, the odds are very much stacked against Caine. JUST THE WAY HE LIKES IT. As Caine works his way through the many obstacles in his path he must decide what he is truly fighting for and what he is truly prepared to do to protect those he holds dear. The answer is of course is….CAINE WILL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES AND GOD HELP YOU IF YOU STAND IN HIS WAY…NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE!!! FINAL THOUGHTSHopefully, I have given you at least a sense of how much fun this novel is. I know I can not completely do it justice but I would certainly strongly recommend you give it a try. ONE FINAL WORD OF WARNING: the book is quite graphic and brutal (maybe a bit less so by today’s standards but still worthy of comment). The language is very coarse, the violence almost never lets up there is some significant gore. It is gritty, violent and morally-vague. However, it is also, IMHO as good as this kind of story gets. CAINE is the supreme warrior, fighting with no rules to protect the woman he loves and bring blood-splattering vengeance to those who put her in harms way. I thought I would end with a few quotes from the book (quoted in another online review) so you can at least get a sense of the writing style employed by Stover:When one of the characters is contrasting Berne to Caine, she describes them as follows:Berne had a feral quality, a wildness of lust and dangerous unpredictability that went with the loose and relaxed jointless way he walked and held himself; he was potently, almost fiercely, alive at all times. Caine, too, had a quality of relaxation, but there was nothing loose about it; instead it was stillness, a meditative readiness that seemed to flow out from him and fill the room with capacity for action, as though all around him ghosts of imaginary Caines performed every movement that was possible within the space: every attack, every defense, every leap or flip or roll. A short while later when Caine learns that Berne is in the area: Kierendal's growing insouciance vanished like smoke before a gale; the black and lethal fury that flooded Caine's face when he spoke that name terrified her more than had his earlier threats. It was as though all of those ghost-Caines that had filled the imaginary air suddenly turned and whipped faster than thought back within his body, to make him so ferociously present that he seemed to burn with a scarlet flame. And a final example of the kind of violent action that takes place in the story: I jam the knife into his eye. Bone crackles and blood sprays. I use the knife to twist his face away from me: a bloodstain on this livery could be fatal, on my way out. He flops like a salmon that's found unexpected land beneath an upstream leap. This is only his body's last unconscious attempt to live; it goes hand-in-hand with the release of his bowels and bladder. He shits and pisses all over himself and his satin-weave sheets -- another one of those primordial reflexes, a futile dodge to make his meat unappetizing to the predator. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!!!
This is an excellent book.Please allow me to open with a caveat or two. First, I'm a Christian...I mean an actual practicing one. If you're a Christian (and possibly this will apply to those of you in other belief systems as well) you need to go into this knowing that it is not what I'd call "Christian friendly". On the other hand if you can read a book realizing "it's fiction" and can take what it has to say that's worthwhile and not be offended that it doesn't agree with you...I think you'll survive. I'm pretty sure I have, and I'm not...you know an apostate or anything, no major switch in belief or world-view. Also be aware that there is "some language". Still it's not thrown around as it is in some books as if the writer can't come up with other forms of descriptors, adjectives or oaths. It's used as it might be by a warrior... and every second person doesn't turn the air blue, just appropriate persons. You who've been in the service probably know what I mean.Now, back to the book. Hari/Caine is an actor, on Earth. The novel takes place partly in/on our Earth, or at least one very like it (we get mentions of books, writers etc. that you'll recognize). The world has at some point before the book opens become a worldwide despotism. In science fiction we usually find one of a few types of dystopia. This is one of those where the "giant corporations" have taken control and run the planetary government. This has always seemed like the least likely of future slave states to me, but okay...here we are. Anyway it has been discovered that Earth, our Earth is only one of maybe an infinite number of "Earths" that exist in the same "place" but in some kind of separate "phase". OverWorld is another one of those Earths. It's a place where magic works, mythical creatures exist, sword and sorcery are not only possible buy day to day life...for some reason they also have cigars and coffee, go figure. With special technology "actors" from "here" can go there. They interact in adventures (you know slaughtering people, starting wars, generally causing mayhem for the locals) as people "here" are either hooked in and seeing things through the actor's eyes (This is how the "rich bigwigs" who can afford to be tied in directly "firsthand" watch)...or recordings can be purchased and enjoyed as we would DVDs..you know like blueray (this is the "second hand" market, the only way the lower "classes" [the hoi polloi as it were]can afford to enjoy these "wonderful family friendly blood baths". And Everyone, that's absolutely EVERYONE watches at least the biggest titles and stars) It's BIG BUSINESS, worth billions, especially when the adventure is about the biggest "stars". And Hari Michaelson/ Caine is THE BIGGEST. With a gift for violence and free flowing soliloquies he brings in big profits. He's been around longer than most actors (see actors are more likely to die during an adventure than live to retirement...and the "episodes" where an actor dies, especially a well know actor dies make huge profits.) Hari...err, I mean Caine is the greatest killer, errr, I mean actor and adventurer out there and has legions of fans. Fans even among the highest classes love Caine. Everyone loves Caine, except possibly his wife. The only problem with that is that Caine is still head over heels, sickeningly, maudlinly...obsessively in love with her, Shanna. Shanna in OverWorld is the wizard Pallis Ril...and brother is she convinced of her own righteousness. She separated from Hari because he's so..nasty and violent you know, yucky.Then it looks as if she's been taken by one of the biggest, worst, most deadly creeps on OverWorld. The one guy that may be able to kill Caine. Can Caine save his love? Can he win and become a good guy? Can love triumph over rottenness? Can Caine win Shanna back? Can you afford to be a "firsthander"?Okay My sense of humor overwhelmed me there. In spite of my poking a little fun I find this to be one of the best novels I've read in a while.From the above point we jump into the story. It's set in this quite original world and is almost completely enthralling. Many of you know that I'm not big on romantic stories. There is a strong strain of romance in this one for those of you who like that yet the writer maintains a good sense of balance not allowing the romance to overwhelm the plot nor the action to choke out the romance. Stover may be better known to some of you through his tie ins with Star Wars and novelizations of that franchise, still here he does a grand job. He manages to include a strong strain of political or semi-political thought in the novel without ever becoming preachy or annoying. It's probably quite possible to read through the novel without noticing it at all if you want to.I find this an incredible book despite a few drawbacks (I found Shanna/Pallas Ril, the love interest incredibly annoying and self-involved, but then I think I/we are supposed to). I rate it 5 stars, recommend it (with the above caveats) and plan to get into the first sequel as quickly as I can.
What do You think about Heroes Die (1999)?
I read this book simply to fulfill a reading challenge requirement for one of the Goodreads groups to which I belong. Needless to say, I had zero expectations going in and found myself pretty quickly engrossed in the plot. I'm not even sure quite how to classify this book as it is, in my estimation, equal parts fantasy and science fiction. It's set on Earth albeit many, many, many years in the future when society has evolved (or devolved, depending on the POV) into a caste system and the ideas of Abraham Lincoln, John Locke, John Kennedy and others of their ilk are considered grounds for sedition. But it's also set on Overworld, a kingdom closer to a medieval level society that's polpulated by humans and "subs", the substandard species like elves, dwarves, ogres, etc. It's a high octane, action-adventure tale full of violence and greed that nevertheless speaks to the deeper issues of self-identity, what it means to be truly free, and what sorts of evils can arise when society is only willing to consider its own desires. It's a mash-up of The Running Man, The Warriors, Escape From New York, The Truman Show, reality TV, and any sword and sorcery movie you can name. And if all of that sounds crazy that's because it is...and yet, it works. It's an example of old school writing where information and meaning has to be gleaned from the context as there is no spoon feeding done here. But if you pay attention, you'll be rewarded with a fascinating concept and larger than life characters who nevertheless play to motivations that anyone can relate to and recognize. My only quibble? I'm not sure the book needed the epilogue.
—Veronica
Износ на хаос: http://knigolandia.info/book-review/g...Антиутопично кастово общество от близкото бъдеще, вманиачено по реалити шоу, в което хора се пренасят в друга реалност и участват в шеметни – и доста кървави – приключения. На пръв поглед – нищо оригинално. Но на втори – “Героите умират” на Матю Стоувър е брутално фентъзи с примес на фантастика, излязло през далечната 1997 г., което дава начало на поредица от четири книги, последната от които излиза през 2012 г. Зачетох го, без да проверя дата на излизане – и през цялото време правех връзки я с Абъркромби, я със Сюзан Колинс, я с Мартин; и после, хоп, изненада – Стоувър определено е повлиял на тях, като само “Игра на тронове” предхожда чисто хронологически тази книга. И ако оригиналната корица (вдясно) изглежда безнадеждно демоде, то случващото се между страниците си е точно в завладяващия стил на съвременните фентъзита, които отдавна надраснаха скучноватите си приключенски предходници.Colibri Bookshttp://knigolandia.info/book-review/g...
—Христо Блажев
This is a fantastic book.From the setting to the action to the plot, this one hits all the right notes. Even the use of the first person present tense (something I normally cringe at) is remarkably well done. Better than that: it makes sense.If you're looking for a book that takes a tech-savvy dystopian world and combines it with high fantasy, mixes in a healthy dose of jaded protagonist, and shakes it all up with just a hint of political commentary until it's pleasantly dark, this is the book for you. Or if you like goats. I mean really, really like goats.
—Sky Corbelli
